Rugby league for Youth...

[yankeerugger]

I was just wondering if there was any prescribed system/rules... for youth (<19,<15, <11...) playing rugby league and/or learning the game for the first time.

I was just wondering how this is done elsewhere, and what efforts have been done in the US (east coast I'd presume) to start up youth programs. I know it is done, but was currious what this looked like.

From what I've seen, league might be an 'easier sell' to get people hooked on in the states then is union as league is much easier to pick up on, and has fewer tricky rules that take years to master the 'art of'...

I was also currious how you AMNRL folks have gone about youth development in the states in reguards to rugby union who have for quite a few years been working on this as well... I don't want to step on the toes of my friends and former teammates currently running <19 rugby union clubs....

 

[roopy]

Here are links to the rules for mini and mod league - the forms of the game to protect juniors.

http://files.arlfoundation.com/ModLeague.pdf

http://files.arlfoundation.com/MiniLeague.pdf

 

[yankeerugger]

thanks, will check them out....

I emailed the AMNRL about this issue, and the email got returned as undeliverable....

 

[yankeerugger]

thanks for the links. Read both, and the both sound great.


Any advise from any of you on how you would go about setting up/organizing/coaching a Mini Footy neighborhood organization when you would have NO other clubs to play against? Would be tricky to be organized enough to be taken seriously, and yet informal due to the lack of any competition to play against....

what I've always envisioned would be a system where if you had 3 coaches, you could divide the kids amongst 3 equally sized/skilled teams, one per coach. Spend 1/2 the session doing skill work/games/activities. Second 1/2 would be a round robin schrimage where 2 teams would play, one would watch and observe while the coach pointed out errors in possitioning, rules violations and good play. After a period (10 min or so) one teams sits out, to rest and work on weak points, while the other plays...

When I was doing this, I was working at a treatment home for boys, so it was a 'captive audience' in more ways then one....

Would you think that I'd have luck doing this on a volentary, payed membership club basis?

When I do this, I want to do it right, so I'm spending time planning it out so that I can make it a success.

I want to start this when my son is in Kindergarden, so that by the time he is in 1st or 2nd grade, there is a core of neighborhoon kids who know what's going on to play around him....

My neighborhoon is FILLED to the gills with kids. If you walk around the "block" (1 block wide, and 2 blocks long) there are AT LEAST 35 kids under the age of 5, and about 6 more pregnent moms. Top this off with 25 or so kids in elementary school.... When you take into account that there are about 12 other "blocks" just like this in our neighborhood, and 3-4 other neighborhoods just like it next door, there will be PLENTY of kids to recruite from.

I have a good reputation in our new neighborhood, and would be able to recruite just from our emediate neighbors 5-6 kids on my trust alone as a seed.

What ever happens, I don't want any "ROUNDBALLERS" taking over our new park!

All teams play 2 periods in a row, and rest one... Coaches keep score of 3 seperate games that are going on simultaniously (if you even bother to keep score at all). WHen I was doing this with kids (playing touch), we didn't even keep track of scores, and just played for the fun.... amazing how pointless it becomes to argue calls when the score doesn't matter!

 

[spinnerhowland]

To be honest the best form for young kids is Flag Rugby League to start.
The Jacksonville Axemen are planning on biulding a young fan base and then hosting a mini camp each week through one of the local after school programs like the police athletic league or similar.
Kids seem to be able to relate due to the use of some "american football" terms.

 

[Big Bunny]

To be honest the best form for young kids is Flag Rugby League to start.
The Jacksonville Axemen are planning on biulding a young fan base and then hosting a mini camp each week through one of the local after school programs like the police athletic league or similar.
Kids seem to be able to relate due to the use of some "american football" terms.

I think that sounds like a great way to go. Flag rugby football, utilizing 6 downs per offensive set, scoring touch downs etc.. you could even take it to the next level and call the halfback a quarterback, the dummy half a dummy centre and so on. I'm guessing that you won't want to go that far, but I've always thought the games terminology should be tailored to each market and their particular needs. Because often you might only have that initial clinic with which to rope the kids in, so it's better that the positions and rules make sense via a correlation to a sport they are already familiar with.

 

[sharkies9]

yankrugger,

Flag rugby is being taught in association with the sharks rugby league in Levittown Pennsylvania. I am a phys.ed. teacher in an elementary school. I am just about to start a unit where my students in grades 3 to 5 will play flag rugby in class. I show a magic moments highlight tape as well a some state of origin to all of my students grades K to 5. At my school we have around 425 kids at least exposed to rugby/ rugby league. Starting in May I will be running an afterschool program for kids grades 2 to 5 to play flag rugby. We did it for the first time last year and had a good turn out, about 60 kids. Those kids played an exhibition before one of the sharks home games. This year the kids in the program will be playing before the first 2 sharks home games on May 18th and 25th. It is amazing how natural some of the kids pick it up. With out being taught it kids were throwing dummys , running switches. We also run a weeklong camp in july which is open to kids throughout our school district and outside of our district. Kids from my school also participated in the flag rugby clinic at the Hurricane Katrina Benefit match in the Fall.
Sal Ranniello
Sharks rugby league

 

[yankeerugger]

thanks sharkies9,

being an elementary school PE teacher has to be the most important possition possible when it comes to spreading the word of the game.

Guess I should start with trying to make friends with the PE teachers at the local schools.

Do you have any set curricula or materials that you are working with? I know the USA rugby (union) people set up a similar type unit that was designed for elementary PE teachers (with no rugby experience) to teach. Does any such materials exist for Rugby League?

I do think this is the way to go. Have a teacher introduce ALL students at several elementary schools. Have them pass out business cards to kids to give to their parents if they would like to play after school (in the spring and fall)... Basically free indoctrination/advertising. Have that PE teacher also help coach the afterschool program....

THANK you so very much!

 

[sharkies9]

I do not have a set curricula to work from. I found to start with my younger kids, play 4 V 4 with a tap after each tackle. I play unlimited downs to start, the ball goes over if there is a knock on/ forward pass. I emphasize on them running straight and passing laterally. I try to keep it as simple as possible, with the smaller numbers the kids get the ball in there hands more, kids want to run with the ball.

 

[yankeerugger]

yes, a quick tap after a 'touch/flag', with droping the ball, obstruction, forward pass or a knock on being the only reason for a change of possession is a great way to start.

Running in strait lines, down channels is a tough concept for americans to figure out. If you start early, they younger kids pick it up, probably because they havn't had other ideas drilled into their heads yet...

Would be nice if some basics were written up as a unit for a PE class for novices to teach...

 

[Tomahawk]

There will be another camp sometime in June after school lets out. This will be at the same place as last year in Upper Chichester.

 

[Lantana]

Yankee rugger...where are you located in the US?

 

[goeagles]

Does the league version of touch differ from the Union version? If not, just go to USA Rugby's website where they should have some instructions on starting touch programs.

 

[Kingbunny]

I believe that these are the websites that can provide the information you require for both tag rugby and touch rugby/football.

http://www.oztag.com/
http://www.internationaltouch.com.au/

 

[yankeerugger]

Omaha Nebraska.... a football (gridiron) mad state.

GoE,

I believe the game that USA rugby is promoting is slightly different. It still maintains some semblence of lineouts, rucks, mauls, and about 3x as many rules... I figure the easier a game is to pick up from the start, the more kids are likely to stick with it.

Also figure that as these kids mature, they will likely play union as well, as they already know most all of the rules! Compared to the rest of the 'newbies', they will be LIGHT YEARS ahead of them!

 

[goeagles]

The touch we played to warm up before practice was 5 touches, no kicking. Very simple and gets players into the idea of supporting the ball carrier rather than blocking, the biggest problem we Americans have when we first come to rugby.

 

[ParraEelsNRL]

Tag RL is the go, get the girls playing aswell.

Goeagles, I didn't think you liked RL at all with the posts you put on other websites?

 

[goeagles]

Parra,

I prefer Union but don't mind League. Just having to put up with childish pricks like Paley/Gort is a tad annoying. Anyway, I'm all for League doing well so long as it doesn't detract from Union.

 

[Tomahawk]

The group that sanctions high school sports in Pennsylvania is called the PIAA or Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association. They sanction all Football, Baseball, Basketball, Soccer, and so on high school sports in Pennsylvania. Any sport they do not sanction is called a club sport. Some high schools do play rugby union as a club sport however, as far as I know none play rugby league.

Last year Dave Nui, and a few other players from the AMNRL (One of them being myself) started 2 summer camps, for kids. Both camps were 1 week long. The age range of the kids was from 6 to 16. In these camps we went over rules, skills, and taught the kids the basic fundamentals of rugby league. At the end of the camp we play flag games, with no contact. One of these camps is already set up to be the week of June 12th in Upper Chichester, Pennsylvania. This will be are 2nd year.

I have also gone to two different elementary schools with Dave Nui were we have put on weeklong coaching clinics in gym classes. In NYC they have a program they run with the kids promoting rugby league.

So the junior development of Rugby League is still in its developmental stages. I personally believe that we need to start to get into high schools, and work on developing the 13 to 18 year olds.

 

[Kurt Angle]

Yankeerugger, with the right approach many kids familiar with the play of American football can be given comparitives to RL rather easy.

When explaining to American acquaintances, the way I've explained RL.

From receiving the ball, RL has 6 downs to touchdown, instead of 4 and 10. That is why the 6th tackle is a down field punt more often.

No forward passes, and setting the line of scrimmage is dynamic and 10 metres back.

These easy parallels give most Americans an easy understanding into the direction of play and reasons for one off hitups by big forwards.

This understanding can then easily feed an enthusiasm, after whcih they can be further entertained by lateral ball movement, fancy footwork etc.

The biggest part of the game to then teach is about the movement of bodies.

Games like Gridiron and AFL with unrestricted direction of ball movement means most of the action is run off the ball, i.e wider receivers/AFL players will scatter from the ball becoming live. They then make a lead from their defender... then it's the responsibility to get the ball to that person once the lead is made.

The important movement is off the ball.

Both the rugby codes where the bal movement is restricted and defence obviously in front of them, there is an emphasis obviously to create isolated mismatches, and allow the ball carrier to exploit this mismatch, whether the mismatch is size or speed.

Then the movement will take place,the important movement is on the ball, not off.